Method of handling slag.



Patsnted May 31, 1910.

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D. T. UROXTON.

METHOD OF HANDLING SLAG.

APPLICATION I-ILED ]5l[1 .1..15,'.1.909v

959,720 Patented May 31, 1910.

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DAVID '1. CROXTON, 0F CLEVELAND, OHIO.

METHOD OF HANDLING SLAG'.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DAVID .T. CRox'roN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, haveinvented a certain new and useful Improvement in Methods of HandlingSlag, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The present invention relates to a method of handling slag as it comesfrom the blastfurnace with aview to delivering it in proper conditionand form to be shipped away from the furnace.

The object of the invention has been to provide a method by which theentire furnace run may be disposed of economically and with a minimum ofexpense in the matter of handling, and with a view to improving thecondition of the slag so that it shall acquire a commercial value ofconsiderable amount.

Heretofore it has been the practice in many places to either dump theslag into piles where it is utterly wasted, or, in other localities,where the topography of the plant is such as to prohibit the use of slagdumps, the molten material is cast into pits of water and granulated andloaded by buckets into co-nveyers. It has further been proposed todispose of slag by running the molten material onto revolving tableswhere it is granulated, the granules being scraped oli into travelingreceivers and having no value except as a refuse. It has also beenattempted to utilize the slag by pouring it into pans wherein it ismolded into bricks, the pan being inverted for the purpose of deliveringthe brick in molded form.

I have devised a method of handling slag distinct from the abovepractices, by means of which method I am able to care for slag in anyamount in which it may be delivered from the furnaces, and I can deliverit in such an improved condition as to cause it to bring a high price inthe market where it is utilized for such purposes as railroad ballast,aggregate for concrete and roofing gravel. Furthermore, my proceduredispenses with the large quantity of hand labor commonly employed inslag casting pits, and the rapidity of disposal is far in excess of anymethod heretofore devised for making this material into a commercialproduct.

Referring to the accompanying drawings which illustrate an arrangementby which Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed March 15, 1909.

Patented May 31, 1910. Serial No. 483,354.

my invention may be carried into practice; Figure 1 is a cross-sectionshowing the general relation of the parts. Fig. 2 is a plan of a castingtable showing a breaker partly 1n section together with the connectionsfor a discharging device. Fig. 3 is an end view illustrating thestructure of the breaker.

It is my purpose to deliver the slag either by ladles, bogies, orrunways in any manner suitable to the plant, to a casting table A. Thetable is of considerable extent and is mounted upon a stationary supportA. The back and ends of the table are provided with upwardly extendingsides A while the forward or discharge side of the table floor isinclined upwardly and gradually, as at A so as to give the forward edgeA approximately the same level as the three sides A just mentioned. Bythis means a retaining inclosure of proper depth is obtained, that depthbeing suflicient to give the slag the thickness required for the uses towhich it is adapted to be put, as for railway ballast, concreteaggregate, etc. I run the slag onto this table until the proper depthhas been reached, whereupon it is permitted to cool so that it willsolidify and be in condition for removal therefrom. For the purpose ofeffecting this removal, I have here shown a follower or scraper bar Bwhich, during the operation of casting slag, is located at the rear ofthe table and extends transversely across the same. This bar isconnected with any suitable power device, such as a drum B and a cable Bor equivalent structure, by which it may be drawn forward after the slaghas solidified and cooled to the proper degree.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in the drawings, it will beseen that instead of connecting the cable directly to the scraper bar Ihave attached to the latter a series of partitions B extending from thebar across the table to the discharge edge thereof, and it is to thesepartitions that I have secured the drawing cables by which the dischargebar is dragged forward. These partition plates may be grooved in thetop, as shown in Fig. 3, to receive the drawing cables and protect themfrom the slag if the proportions of the various parts are such as torender this advisable. These partition plates are provided for thepurpose principally of separating the large mass of slag into divisionswhich may more easily and readily be broken into fragments of the propersize and thickness as the slag sheet is drawn from the table.

Immediately below the forward edge of the table and in position toreceive the slag drawn therefrom, I provide a receiving car 0, and abovethe edge of the table I mount a breaking mechanism D, such as that shownin the drawings.

In the breaker illustrated a reciprocating beam D having drop hammers orbreakers D thereon is mounted in a frame D and a cam D is locatedunderneath the ends thereof in such manner as to lift the beam andpermit it to drop at properly timed intervals during the withdrawal ofthe slag sheet. The descent of the breaking beam upon the sheet of slagas it projects over the end of the table will, obviously, result in thecrushing oil or breaking of that portion of the sheet overhanging theedge, the resulting fragments falling into the car below. As the slagsheet is continually drawn forward sliding over the inclined portion ofthe floor of the casting table, the breaker will intermittently descendupon the overhanging portion of the same and reduce the entire slagsheet to the desired condition for shipment. When the entire mass ofslag has thus been brought to the proper form for delivery to themarket, the discharge bar is dragged back to the rear side of the tableby any means such, for example, as a cable D properly reeved aroundpulleys to the same winding drum which is used to drag it forward. Thedetail connection of the operating parts, however, is not of anyconsequence so long as the general principles of the invention arepreserved.

It will be seen that with the method of handling the slag which I havehere .disclosed, any quantity of slag may be taken care of and handledwithout the aid of a crew of hand laborers, and consequently may bedisposed of with minimum cost. The method further enables the furnacemanto deliver his slag in that condition in which it has the greatestmarket value.

The slag produced by my method will be characterized for its greaterdensity and the absence of porosity and cellular structure, ascontrasted with slags now produced in the direct methods from the moltenmaterial. The former methods of granulating slag in pits give it nocommercial value and the former method of running slag in runners andsoaking it with water and pouring it in the cars produces a lightcellular structure from In distinction, my

cooling and solidifying the same in sheet form, moving the sheet overthe edge of its support and breaking the unsupported portion intofragments.

2. The method of handling slag which comprises casting it into sheets ofsuitable thickness upon a suitable support, cooling and solidifying thesame, separating the slag from its support by lateral sliding movementand breaking the sheet slag into fragments as it is moved.

3. The method of handling slag which comprises casting it into sheets ofsuitable thickness, maintaining it in sheet form until thesolidification has been effected, separating the sheets from the supportby a sliding movement, breaking the separated slag into fragments anddelivering the same into a suitable carrier.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto affix my signature in the presence oftwo witnesses.

DAVID T. CROXTON. lVitnesses:

H. R. SULLIVAN, J. M. \VooDwABD.

